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IDF takes plasma screens to battlefield

Sep. 18, 2009
Yaakov Katz , THE JERUSALEM POST

 

 

A soldier holds the DAP system during the exercise in the North this week.
Photo: Yaakov KatzIn the Second Lebanon War three years ago, IDF commanders were criticized for staying in command centers in Israel and watching the fighting on plasma screens. On Thursday, the Ground Forces Command and Division 36 of the Northern Command wrapped up a five-day exercise that brought the plasma and the commanders out to the field.

During the drill, the IDF, for the first time, tested the Digital Army Program - called Tzayad in Hebrew - which was recently installed throughout Division 36 (the Ga'ash Armored Division), the main formation on the Golan Heights.

The plan is to complete installation of the system in various IDF fighting units by the end of next year. This week's exercise drilled a potential conflict with Syria.

"The DAP provides commanders with a clear view of the battlefield and brings them all of the available data so they can be more effective when making decisions," explained Col. Gil Maoz, DAP project manager in the Ground Forces Command.

The system comes in several versions. The simplest is a screen that can be found in almost every IDF vehicle today in the West Bank that has a digitalized map of that unit's area of operations. The map is not linked live to a satellite but is updated every few months.

The new version - called Torch 400 - will be deployed, in an initial stage, to battalion commanders and possibly also to company commanders. Most tanks and artillery cannons have also been equipped with the system.

"The system can either be in a vehicle or in a handheld computer, and allows a commander to create digital targets and map out battle plans that will be seen by all of the system users," a Ground Forces Command officer explained. "Essentially, a commander can just hit the screen and mark a target, and that target will be seen by tanks, artillery cannons and even attack helicopters."

In addition to a map of the area of operations, the system provides users with a 3D version of the battlefield, enabling commanders to better asses their battle plans.

Since the system also marks the location of other users, it is effective in preventing friendly-fire incidents. During Operation Cast Lead in the Gaza Strip earlier this year, the systems - a few of which were tested in the field - were credited for preventing at least two friendly-fire shootouts.

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IAF chief: We must stop S-300 delivery

Sep. 18, 2009
Yaakov Katz , THE JERUSALEM POST

Israel needs to make every effort to stop the S-300 missile defense system from reaching countries where the air force may need to fly, IAF commander Maj.-Gen. Ido Nehushtan has told The Jerusalem Post in an exclusive interview.

"The S-300 is a Russian-made surface-to-air missile system that is very advanced, with long ranges and many capabilities," Nehushtan told the Post in the interview, which appears in our Friday Magazine.

"We need to make every effort to stop this system from getting to places where the IAF needs to operate or may need to operate in the future," he said.

The S-300 is one of the most advanced multi-target antiaircraft missile systems in the world and has a reported ability to track up to 100 targets simultaneously while engaging up to 12 at the same time. It has a range of about 200 km. and can hit targets at altitudes of 90,000 feet.

While Russia and Iran signed a deal for the sale of the system several years ago, according to latest assessments in Israel, it has yet to be delivered.

Last week, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu made a secret visit to Moscow for talks, which according to some news reports focused on the possible sale of the S-300 to Iran.

Earlier in the month, reports surfaced that the Mossad was involved in the interception of the missing Arctic Sea cargo ship in August. According to some versions, the ship was carrying S-300 missiles destined for Iran.

In the interview, Nehushtan offered a fierce defense of Operation Cast Lead in the Gaza Strip in December 2008 and January 2009.

He defended Israel's opening bombardment, including the attack on Hamas policemen, which the UN's Richard Goldstone-led fact-finding mission this week branded a violation of international law.

"We need to look at Hamas from top to bottom," Nehushtan said, in answer to a question about the legitimacy of targeting Hamas police forces. "Look at the way they [Hamas] killed Fatah. Who do you think did that? This is how they killed their own people. We need to disconnect from traditional military concepts and understand that Hamas doesn't work that way. They don't come in uniforms or in tanks to a battlefield."

No other military in the world, Nehushtan said, was as careful as Israel's when operating in a densely-populated urban setting.

"This was demonstrated by our accuracy as well as [by] the attention we gave to every single target, with exact planning to prevent collateral damage, even by calling the people there to let them leave their homes, which in some cases were storehouses for weapons," the air force chief said. "We then kept our eye on the homes and ensured that they left. We gave this service and only then attacked."

While vague in his answers on the Iranian threat, Nehushtan said Israel "retains the right to defend itself" and that "ultimately, the job of the IAF is to provide security for the State of Israel and we know how to do this."

Israel, he said, preferred that the Iranian issue be handled by the international community. "We would be happy if these efforts are successful," he said.

The sense of urgency regarding the S-300 was mentioned earlier this week in a report on the Iranian threat published by the Bipartisan Policy Center and called "Meeting the Challenge - Time is Running Out."

Authored by two former US senators and the former deputy head of the US Military European Command - whose geographic area of responsibility includes Israel - the report warned that Israel might attack in one of two scenarios.

"Should we [the US] fail to act decisively to curtail Iran's nuclear program in the near-term, or if it appears likely that Iran is about to obtain game-changing military technology - such as Russia's S-300 anti-aircraft system - Israel, more likely than not, will act on its own," the authors wrote.

This article can also be read at http://www.jpost.com /servlet/Satellite?cid=1253198148610&pagename=JPArticle%2FShowFull